Harris

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Origins of surname

This is a common English surname recorded in many spellings, including Harry, Harrie, Harrhy, Harris, Harries, and Harriss. All derive from the personal name Harry, itself a nickname form of Henry. Henry, which originates from the Frankish name "Henn-ric", meaning "home-rule", was first introduced into Britain at the Norman Conquest of England, in 1066, and is recorded in the Domesday Book in 1086.

Early records

Harris first appears in Jersey baptism records in 1710 and 1713 with the children of Edouard and Marie Kitchin, and then in 1717 and 1720 with the children of Charles, a newcomer from England, and Elizabeth Le Feuvre. However, these early lines appear to have died out and the next baptism on record is in St Brelade in 1796, when Harriet, daughter of John and Sara, was baptised.

A number of Harris men appear to have come to the island with their families, or married in Jersey and started families with local girls, during the peak immigration years of the first half of the 19th century. We have been able to identify five separate family trees from this period.

These wills created by members of the Harris family are now held by Jersey Archive. By visiting the archive site and using the names, dates and reference numbers shown here, it is possible to view a copy of each will. You will have to subscribe to the Archive's online service to do this. To find out more about this collection, which covers the period from 1663 to 1978, and how to search for your family's wills there, visit our Jersey wills page